


Silver Locks

by victuurikatsu



Series: YOI Drabbles [5]
Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-06
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-10-23 11:44:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17682812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/victuurikatsu/pseuds/victuurikatsu
Summary: Yuuri never felt like he had a lot due to constantly traveling but he failed to count the time he landed in Detroit for the bulk of his university days and training. That’s where most of the clutter truly came from and he still to this day solely blamed Phichit for enabling him. Some of the belongings were easy to separate from for donation purposes, while other boxes were unmarked and a clear set up by an older sister who had a hidden agenda.





	Silver Locks

**Author's Note:**

> Written for day 4 of Vitya Week 2018!

It had taken a few weeks for the rest of Yuuri’s belongings to ship from Japan to Russia, and he was just so tired of looking at stacked cardboard boxes that he enlisted Victor’s help to declutter everything. Yuuri never felt like he had a lot due to constantly traveling but he failed to count the time he landed in Detroit for the bulk of his university days and training. That’s where most of the clutter truly came from and he still to this day solely blamed Phichit for enabling him. Some of the belongings were easy to separate from for donation purposes, while other boxes were unmarked and a clear set up by an older sister who had a hidden agenda.

“Yuuri…” Victor started. “Did you ask Mari to send you old posters of me?”

Yuuri froze and immediately rushed over and to his horror found Victor sifting through piles of posters he had collected over the years.

“Makka! Look you’re in this one! It’s when we first debuted you!” Victor laughed heartily as his furry companion came rushing over to sniff and paw at the poster.

Debuted? Victor looked over at Yuuri finding the look of confusion plastered on his face. He urged him to take a seat next to him as he sifted through each poster, some bringing up fond memories, others being purely promotional.

“What did you mean by debuted?” Yuuri asked, his face flushed red from the shame he felt. Victor did his best to let Yuuri know it was fine by giving him a comforting pat on the shoulder.

“Every moment in my skating life has been a series of PR moments, Yuuri. I always give them something to talk about.” Victor replied, winking. Somehow that made Yuuri flush even more.

“How could that not be your specialty?” Yuuri said warmly. “You always are full of surprises.”

“Wanna hear about the best one?” Victor asked coyly.

Yuuri nodded and looked as Victor splayed out the posters, the first being being a photo of him in a junior competition with the Eros costume. His long hair tied back and luxuriously lush. The second poster being the first official release of him with shorter hair, it was Yuuri’s favorite one and he had two copies, one that just happened to be right next to where he slept in Hasetsu. Victor looked akin to royalty in the photo. He remembered the sheer pandemonium the day Victor Nikiforov debuted the signature shorter hair after having a signature longer style for so long.

“It was such a shock when you cut off all of your hair.” Yuuri said absentmindedly staring between the two. He kept a silent thought to himself, how he had often daydreamed about running his hair through the longer locks.

“Hey! It’s not like all of it is gone! I still have some!” Victor pouted, pushing Yuuri down from his upright kneeling position.

Yuuri laughed, balancing himself back up and ruffling his hands through Victor’s silky silver hair. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, please continue.”

“It’s like I said, my life was a constant whirlwind of PR. Everyone wanted to know everything they could about me. Whatever move I made was carefully watched, I often felt like I was under a microscope most of the time. People have this certain idea of me, and I don’t know if how I was back then was actually who I felt I really am. Maybe just what I wanted people to see and think I was.” Victor rattled off.

Yuuri looked at him intently, taking in each word and feeling the strings of heart tugging slightly.

“Honestly that’s why when you told me that one day at the beach that you just wanted me to be me, it took me by such surprise. What could you have meant? Spending your life being an otaku for me and asking me just to be me?” Victor teased, causing Yuuri once again to hide his face in shame.

Victor traced delicate lines against the paper, aligning it against the length of his hair. He had every style done known to man. Curls, space buns, braids, braided crowns, waves, even unfortunately crimping. But when he had that longer hair he felt like a doll that could be molded and shaped into an expectation that he worked hard to fall into. You didn’t achieve gold by not meeting them.

“One day, I got into an argument with Yakov. I wanted to try my hand in having music made specifically for me, while exploring different themes. He told me that I would skate to whatever was decided for me through the RSF. But I swore if they made me do another mythical piece I was going to scream! They only wanted me to cause I looked the part. Something between godly and magical.” Victor continued.

He drew a hand up to his shorter locks, the bangs covering in his left eye. Victor hadn’t realized it but he was lightly grasping at the nape of his neck. How long had it been since it felt free from the metaphorical cuff that weighed heavy on him?

“So then I cut it off, arguably my first act of defiance. Didn’t tell anyone, and gave the press a hell of a field day at the next practice. Ah I wish you could have seen Yakov’s face, he looked like he could have spontaneously combusted.” Victor laughed in delight.

Yuuri locked eyes with Victor, though they were warm and inviting, he couldn’t help but sense a hint of sadness in them. Had Victor always felt this pressure his entire career?

“You still looked magical even after you cut your hair.” Yuuri murmured, taking Victor’s hand in his as if to comfort him.

Victor smirked, drawing that same hand up to his lips and gently kissing his knuckles. “Even so, after that they gave me a whole new persona to live up to, the playboy.”

They gathered the posters up and placed them carefully back in the box. Victor took a step forward and enveloped Yuuri into his arms. He took a deep breath in and exhaled out, almost as if he was finally letting go of something Yuuri couldn’t quite understand. When Victor backed up just slightly, he cupped Yuuri’s face in his hands, grateful.

“When you asked me to be “Just Victor.” I struggled with that for a really long time. But then it got easier and harder. I found I constantly thought of my next move even more intently when it came to you. What could I do to better myself? Both as your coach and whatever you needed me to be. What could I give you that you hadn’t already given me?” Victor said.

“And what was that exactly?” Yuuri questioned.

“To not give truth to the new persona they gave me. I never wanted to be the playboy. But when you came in, it unlocked within me a love that people dream about. A life that I have always dreamed about but neglected…” Victor began. “I never knew what I wanted outside of skating, and I’m glad that it ended up being you, Yuuri.”

Yuuri smiled up at Victor warmly, he could feel the strands of fickle silver hair tickling his cheeks as Victor dipped lower to rest his forehead against his. Yuuri drew a hand up to gently caress the silver locks, happy and grateful.

“You can always be who you truly are with me, Victor. I’ll never want anything more.” Yuuri said.

Victor beamed, his heart swelling with resolve as he found he desperately wanted to reveal this new persona to the world: a man in love.


End file.
